Bonding machine



Oct. 20, 1953 A. E. CARLILE BONDING MACHINE Filed March 15, 1952 3 Sheets-Sheet l 56L 30 35 //Z 22 5 F A? 1 77a. Q ki I;

I INVENTOR. i L ALFRED f. CARL/LE F BY ATTORNEY Oct. 20, 1953 A. E. CARLILE 2,655,980

BONDING MACHINE Filed March 15, 1952 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. 415950 f CAWZ/AE BY W Arrow/5y MIN ..i L

Oct. 20, 1953 cARLlLE 2,655,980

BONDING MACHINE Filed March 15, 1952 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 5 iiilillimg INVEN TOR. 41mm 5. CAM/LE g 3 QfW 60 55 661 42 Arm/8N5? Patented Oct. 20, 1953 UNITED STATES FATENT OFFICE BONDING MACHINE Alfred E. Carlile, Meadville, Pa., assignor to Talon, Inc.,,a corporation of Pennsylvania 7 Claims.

This. invention relates to a machine for bonding or sealing of sheets and films of thermoplastic. material by the use of a solvent, solvent mixture, or softening agent for the thermoplasticmaterial.

In the manufacture of articles, such. as raincoats, shower curtains, garment bags, and the like, made of relatively thin sheets or films of thermoplastic resin materials, such as. vinyl resins, it. is. necessary to unite the edges of two or more filmsor sheets. It has been the general practice to unite these marginal edges by sewing and forming seams by means. of thread by the use of a conventional sewing machine. In such. practice, the needle would penetrate the edge of the material thereby weakening the same and distorting the material, and the results. were not satisfactory;

Various types of sealing or bonding machines have. been suggested and used. usually employing heat and: a. solvent agent but these machines were not satisfactory. primarily because they.- were too. expensive, bulky, and: difilcult to operate. Also, such machines were limited in the types of: material that could be united vide a sealing or bonding. machine havingan.

improved. means. incorporated therewith. forapplying a..solvent automatically-to a. binding strip: or the pliesofmaterialto be bound .as.they. pass into. and through the. machine.

Itis still. another object of this invention to, provide means for regulating the flow of the,

solvent material from the applying means so that the proper amount of solvent is evenly applied to the binding strip or plies of material.

It is a more specific object of the inventionto providemeans in the form of amir or jets for applying a solvent to abi-nding strip-or plies of material as they pass therealong having means. arranged therewith. for automatically stopping.

the; flow; of' the solvent: therefrom; when the: f eed'. ofzthe: binding strip orsplies of .material into: andv through; the. machine; is. arrested...

Various other objects and advantages of this invention will be more apparent in. the course of the following specification, and. will be par= ticularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings, there is shown. for the purpose of illustration, an embodimentwhich my invention may assume in practice- In these drawings:

Fig. 1 is a front elevational. view of the im-r proved machine of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a front elevational view, partly in section, of the head of my machine;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view, partly in section, taken on line 3--3 of Fig. 2;;

Fig. 4- is a sectional view taken on. line 44 of'Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is an end view of the head and associated mechanism, as shown in Fig. 2;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged sectional view taken. on line 66 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 7 is a sectional. view taken on line 1+1 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 8 is a sectional view taken on. line 8=8 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 9 isa sectional view taken on line 99- of Fig.8;

Fig.- 10 is a fragmentary plan view showing the binding strip and the plies of material to: be bound thereby; and

Fig. 11 is a cross sectional view of the bound plies of material or seam.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, theimproved machine of: my invention, as more clearly shown in Figs..1 and 2, comprises a hollow gooseneck frame 2 similar to the head or frame" of a conventional sewing machine. which is mounted. upon a. suitable table top 3- having sup porting legs 4. Within the head,. there is ar ranged in suitable bearings. 5 carriedthereby', a main drive shaft 6: having a. combined. pulley and. hand. Wheel Iv arranged. on the inner end' thereof at: the outer side of the frame. The pulley 1. maybe connected to any suitable source: of power for rotating the shaft 6, but in the present instance there is provided an electric motor 8: mounted. on the-under side of the table top 3i for driving this shaft 6 having a shaft lit with a. friction clutch l3 arranged therewith.

Directly opposite the-.- end. of the shaft- I0; there is arranged in suitable'bearings carried by a yoke-shaped bracket l4", a reciprocable shaft llla: having a:- clutch plate 15 arranged on the inner end: thereof and." a pulley 9 over which a: belt, 12, is; arranged. which passes over the-pulley 7* of the shaft 6. There-is" pivotally attached to" 3 the yoke-shaped member It, as at Ma, a lower extending movable arm I? to which one end of a strap or rod 18 is connected at the outer end thereof. The upper end of the arm H is connected to the shaft Illa, as at Ha, for manipulating the same. The opposite end of the strap or rod 18 is connected to a foot treadle IQ for manually actuating the clutch through the movement of the shaft Illa. The clutch is normally maintained in an inoperative position so as not to rotate the shaft 6 unintentionally by means of a spring 20 extending between the yoke-shaped member l4 and the arm l1.

As more clearly shown in Figs. 2 and 5 of the drawings, in the base or bed of the frame or head 2, there is arranged in suitable bearings carried thereby a horizontally disposed shaft 2| having a knurled pressure roll 22 arranged on the outer end thereof which is disposed directly opposite a similar knurled pressure roll 23 disposed directly thereabove and with which it cooperates in a manner to be described hereinafter. The opposite end of the shaft 2| is connected to the main drive shaft {5 through suitable gearing, including bevel gears 24 and 25, vertical shaft 25, and bevel gears 21 and 28.

The pressure roll 23 is mounted on the outer end of a stud shaft 29 which is suitably journaled in a reciprocable supporting member mounted in a. suitable slideway in the outer lower end of the frame 2. This pressure roll 23 is driven by the main shaft 6 and connected thereto by means of bevel gears 3] and 32, vertical shaft 33, and bevel gears 34 and 35.

Within the upper part of the frame 2, there is arranged next to the main drive shaft 3 therein substantially parallel thereto, a lever-like member 36 which is pivoted to the frame 2 intermediate its length, as at 3'5. The outer end of this member 36 is loosely connected to a collar 38 arranged on the upper end of a sleeve-like member 39 arranged around the vertical shaft 33. The reciprocable member 30 is secured to the lower end of this sleeve-like member 39, as at 49. There i arranged circumferentially around the sleeve-like member 39, a compression spring 4! for normally maintaining the head 3% in its lowermost position with the pressure roll 23 carried thereby in contact with the pressure roll 22.

To the opposite end of the lever-like member 36, there is connected a chain or other suitableflexible member 42 which passes down through the inner end of the housing or frame 2 and around a pulley 43 suitably mounted for rotation below the table top 3; There is suitably mounted on the under side of the table top 3, a bracket member 44 to which there is pivotally attached, as at 45, a lever-like member 46. There is carried by the member 46, a downwardly extending adjustable member ll on which there is mounted adjacent the lower end thereof a knee action lift member 48. The chain 42 is disposed around the pulley 43 and the end of the chain is attached to the lever-like member 56, as at 49, as shown in Fig. 1.

According to the present invention, and as more clearly shown in Figs. 2, 5, and 6, there is mounted on the front side of the frame 2 at the outer end thereof, a bracket member 5| to which there is pivotally attached, as at 52, a movable member 53 which has a fluid passageway 5& arranged in the lower end thereof which communicates with a passageway 55 in a housing 56 mounted on the lower end of the member 53. In this housing 56 at the inner end thereof,

there is arranged a pair of jets 5i and 5B having passageways 59 and 66, respectively, which communicate with the passageway 55 in the housing.

There is arranged within the passageway 55, a pair of plunger-like pin members 54 and 62 having reduced end portions 63 and 63a, respectively, which cooperate with the respective passageways 59 and 52 in the jets 51 and 58 for a purpose and in a manner to be described. The opposite ends of the piunger-like members 6i and 52 extend out through the outer end of the housing 56 and are connected to yoke-like member Eda which in turn is pivotally connected, as

- at 64, to a link member 65 which in turn is connected, as at 65a, to the bed of the frame 2. There i disposed between the yoke-like member 84a and the outer side of the housing 53, a coil spring member 66 for normally maintaining the i jets 5? and 58 in their innermost position, as

shown in Fig. 6, for a purpose to be described. The upper end of the passageway 54 is connected by a passageway to one end of a pipe line 61, as at $8, and the other end of this pipe line 61 being connected to a suitable reservoir 69 suitably mounted on top of the frame 2 which reservoir contains a suitable bonding fluid.

With the upper end of the pivotal member 53, there is arranged an outwardly extending armlike member 79 which is connected to the plunger 7! of a solenoid '52 mounted on the frame 2 of the machine below the upper arm thereof, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. The actuation of this solenoid is controlled by a micro switch 13 arranged opposite the side of a disk-dike member which is mounted on the shaft lfia on the under side of the table top 3. The plunger of this micro switch 7-3 contacts the side of the member 96, and the opening and closing thereof is controlled by the sidewise movement of the shaft Ilia which in turn is controlled by the action of the foot treadle I9, as shown in Fig. 1.

As more clearly shown in Figs. 2, 3, and 4 of the drawings, directly opposite the lower end of the member 53, there is mounted on top of the bed of the machine, a combined folding and guide member 34 for guiding the flexible binding strip S into and through the machine. This guide member M has a fiat leading planar surface 15 which gradually terminates in an arcuate or curved surface 76. Along the leading planar surface, there is arranged a pair of guide strap members 1! which tend to guide and hold the binding strip against the planar surface of the guide member as it passes therealong.

There is also disposed opposite the surfaces of the guide member 74, a spring-like member 78 which tends to hold the binding strip against the surface of the guide member adjacent the jets El and 58. The outer end surface 19 of the guide member 14 is arranged angularly and is positioned directly opposite the inner edges of the pressure rolls 22 and 23, and has a concave surface 8i! arranged therein which terminates in a plane parallel to the passage of the binding strip S between the pressure rolls 22 and 23, as shown in Figs. 3 and 9.

There is positioned below the pivotal connection 52 of the member 53, an adjustable stop 92 for limiting the inward movement of the member 53 together with the jets 51 and 58 carried thereby. Between the upper end of the member 53 and the solenoid plunger ll, there is arranged an adjustable link 93 for adjusting the movement tape or strip S isprovided' and positiezrediiprefe -81 en==the=bed of the machine, as

-F l and z'l Theleading end oii the stripis"theirthreaded along-theside of' 'the fold ingg-and g-uidemember lll between th outer sidc orplanar surface fl-th'ereofi'and tlie strap mom- 11)";

bersd't, and along theareuate or curved surface 'I'Girr under tlie springmemben 18-; and thence back along; the curved? surfacetn at the -end of the guide-and foldingmember T4 andbetweeir the pressm'e roHs-M -and 231 witlrthe-strin-being- 15' folded" upon itself-when it is-posi tiened between": the pressure -rails? such po'si tion, it will he seen that? the -stripis positi'oned directly-opposite the pairpf j ets 51 and SW and irrpositioxr forgthe solventto" be appliedthereto as the strip-passes alongthe planar surface' lfi of the--g-uide --member- Ni asshownin li igsw and fit The motor is-them energized and the -maehine is now rea'd'y tooperate. Iii-"Will'- be understood that when the machine is not in operation, the valve 9 l= iir the line -6? fromthe reservoin- 6-9'to the member t'ab' is normally closed so asto-prevent' tlie' fiow-of thasolvent orfiuid from the reservoir" tmtl'ie jets-5W and 58*and opened when the machine is' set in operation: Whenthe'motor'il isenergized, the solenoid 72* is simultaneouslyenerg-i'zed thereby movingthe member -53 aboutits pivotai connectiomat 52 so-as-to=move the-jets 51 and 58 to theirretracted position away fromthe gui'de F45 In: such posit'ion, it will be scen -35 that thereduced portions and 6i*ef'-the-p1ung-=- ers'lit' and." (r2 2 respectively; are disposed in the passageways 59 an'd' fill ofthe jets 51 and 58', respectiveiy; so asto prevent the-flow cfthe solvent or -liquid fremthe jets and 581 I Also; in such position, it will be seer-s that the 51* and 58 are I spaced'irom and out of'contact with the bind=- ingstti'p-Si 'I-Tie'edges' of the two pliesof materiai P and P that are to be bound together are placed directly" opposite-the-pressurerolls 22 and 23 between the fold, of the strip S, as shownin Fig. 8. Thefoot treaule I'B is'then pressed downwardly-soas'to actuate theicliitch'; lfiliwhereby theimazin shaft 6 is rotated-through the actionvofathe clutch;litamlev 50- thespre'ssureenolls 22 and 23sarerotated imoppos site directions by means of the various gears and shafts previously described. When the pressure rolls are set in motion, it will be seen that the binding strip S is pulled thereby through the machine together with the two superimposed plies of material positioned between the fold of the strip.

When the foot treadle I9 is pressed downwardly by the operator, it will be seen that the shaft "la is moved to the left, as shown in Fig. 1, thereby moving the clutch plate 15 into engagement with the opposing member [3 of the clutch through the action of the flexible member 18 and the arm l'l against the action of the spring 20. When the shaft Illa is moved to the left, the disk-like member 90 which is secured thereto moves therewith thereby opening the micro switch 13 positioned adjacent thereto which in turn opens the circuit to the solenoid 12 thereby de-energizing the same. Upon de-energization of the solenoid, the plunger H thereof moves outwardly and the member 53 is moved about its pivotal connection 52 by means of the spring 66 thereby moving th jets 51 and 58 inwardly against the strip S, as shown in Fig. 6,

and i'm-posttion te applymersoliventimeflurdttherei-a As the pressure-rolls:.221ami 23tp1flfithmbihdlhg strip STth'ereltietween,v itiwilfbe seemthat it isicontinuously drawn from the roll of tape:positibnedr P n" a I and; is moved betweem the: outer surface-of the combined guide .andifoldingi her- 14 andf th'e j 'ets: 51": and-158 which: are disposedi. directly opposite-theguideimembera Asthestriprzmoves along "the L guide member; thertwo spaced-a apart -rowsaF and E ot solvent -fluid? are: applied? to the oneside of the bindi'ng: stripebwmeans of? the j ets il andfiflwith the fluid passingifronrsthes chamber=-55 the-housing: 56 :into:-and?thrrmgl'rzi. the-passageways fl and fill to the surfa'ce otf 1 and 'thetwoepl ies of materialare: securely bound? together by the binding strip;- as shown in- -Eigr of the'draiw ingsa Then the bindingoperation-- is: conipl'etedt on" wherrit is desired toarrest thedis'position; ofi'the:

solvent onfiuid on the -strips and toistopsthei When the -micro switch is elbsed theecircui t to thGSOlEHOid I2: i's closed thereby so as-to: energize the solenoid: Upon energi'zatibnpfithe solen idi the plunger T l thereof i's drawn-inwardly thereby movi'ng the disk" member-EW-about its pivotal corr nation-:52 to-its retracted positierr; In such posi tion; the reducedt end portions 63- and- 64 of-*theplimgers 64 and" 62; respecti ely; enter the -pass seig ewa-ys5 9-ar-nzliill' of the -j 'ets 5T and= 58jrespee'- ti'vel-y, therebyclosing these passageways seas to preventanwfiovwofthesolvent or fluid therefrom;

asshown in'Fi'g: 3; I-ir sucirposition; it will be'seerr that the outer ends of the jets '51 and ifl are againspaced from the strip S. This arrangement for closing the jets 51 and 58 so as to prevent any leakage of the solvent or fluid therefrom when the machine is not in operation is one of the most important aspects of the present invention.

As a result of my invention, it will be seen that there is provided a simple and inexpensive machine for joining together sheets or plies of a thermoplastic material which can be conveniently maintained and operated. It will also be seen that there is incorporated with my machine an eifective means for preventing unintentional flow of the solvent fluid when the machine i not in operation. In my machine, it will be seen that an even amount of the solvent fluid is disposed on the binding strip or plies of material thereby resulting in a neat and efiective bond.

While I have shown and described an embodiment which my invention may assume in practice, it will be understood that this embodiment is merely for the purpose of illustration and description, and that other forms may be devised 7 within the scope of my invention as defined in the appended claims.

* What I-claim as my invention is:

1.'In a machine of the class described, a pair of oppositely disposed rotatable rollers, means for delivering and guiding the edges of plies of material into and between said rollers, means for driving said rollers, at least a pair of jets for applying a fluid material to the surface of at least one ply of material adjacent the edge thereof, a plunger arranged within each of said jets for preventing unintentional flow of fluid material therefrom when the driving means is arrested, and means moving the jets relative to said plungers so as to permit the fluid material to pass through said jets to said material when said driving means is in operation and driving said rollers.

i 2. In a machine of the class described, a pair of oppositely disposed rotatable rollers, means for delivering and guiding a binding strip into and between said rollers, means for driving said rollers, a guide positioned forwardly of said rollers for guiding the strip into and between said rollers including means for folding the strip upon itself as it passes therebetween, at least a pair of jets arranged opposite said guideand which cooperate therewith to wipe a fluid material on one side of said strip as it passes therealong, a plunger arranged within each of said jets for preventing unintentional flow of the fluid material therefrom, and means for moving said J'ets relative to said plungers so as to permit the flow of the fluid material therefrom when said driving means is in operation and driving said rollers.

3. A machine of the class described comprising a pair of oppositely disposed rotatable rollers, a rotatable shaft for driving said rollers, means for driving said shaft, means for guiding the edges of plies of material into and between said rollers, at least a pair of jets for applying a fluid material to one side of the surface of at least one ply of materia1 adjacent the edge thereof as it passes therealong, a reservoir for supplying the fluid material to said jets, a plunger arranged within each of said jets for preventing unintentional flow of the fluid materia1 therefrom, means for actuating said plungers and for moving them to a retracted position simultaneously with the arresting of said driving means and the rotation of said rollers.

4. A machine of the class-described, as defined in claim 3, wherein the means for actuating said plungers and for moving them to a retracted position simultaneously with the arresting of said driving means consists of a solenoid.

5. Ina machine of the class described, a pair of oppositely disposed rotatable rollers, means for.

delivering and guiding the edges of plies of material into and between said rollers, means for driving said rollers, at least a pair of jets for applying a fluid material to the edge of at least one ply of material, a movable member in which said jets are mounted, means for actuating said movable member so as to position the jets in contact with the surface adjacent the edge of, a ply of material as it passes along said guide and for moving the Jets to a retracted position away from said guide and said ply of material.

6. In a machine of the class described, the construction as defined in claim 5, including a stationary plunger arranged within each of said jets for preventing unintentional flow of the fluid materia1 therefrom, said movable member adapted to move said jets relative to saidplungers upon actuation thereof by said actuating means.

7. Ina machine of the class described, a pair of oppositely disposed rotatable rollers, means for delivering and guiding the edges of plies of material into and between said rollers, means for driving said rollers, at least a pair of jets for applying a fluid material to the surface adjacent the edge of at leastone ply of material, a pivotally mounted member, a pair of jets carriedby said member communicating with a fluid passageway therein, a stationary plunger arranged within each of said jets for preventing uninten tional flow of the fluid materia1 therefrom, a reservoir for said fluid material, a conduit connecting said reservoir with the passageway in said pivoted member, and means for actuating said pivoted member so as to position the jets in contact with the surface of the ply of material as it passes along said guide and for moving the Jets to a retracted position relative to said plungers.

ALFRED E. CARLILE.

Name I Date Hosfield Mar. 14, 1944 Number 

